Project Freelancer: Rebirth
by CAPTAINPRICE79
Summary: A new Project Freelancer arises, and Alex Valesquez, son of the previous Agent California, accepts the offer to join on the condition he be allowed to kill the person who killed his mother years prior, no matter who. Will he find them? Or is this a hopeless endeavor?
1. Prologue

**Hey guys Price here and welcome to the Prologue of Project Freelancer: Rebirth. I look forward to writing this story, and I hope you look forward to it too. I will probably make this longer, but I don't really know. I meant all the stories in the Project Freelancer series to be twenty chapters, but I had no idea what to do as filler. Granted I could have probably made up my own, but I think one was enough for that story, right? Anyway, I enjoyed writing it, and I hope you enjoyed reading it. This story, in case you didn't know, follows the _new_ Agent California, Alex Velasquez. Alex is the son of Ciara Velasquez in case you didn't read the original, who was the original Agent California. The AI will all be new, except for Lambda, as Ciara technically stole him and passed him on to Alex if he ever needed it. Also, literally every Freelancer is sex-swapped, or in other words, if they were a guy, they are women, if they were a woman, they are men. This does include the Director and Counselor. Also, bare in mind that Alex does not know that Tex killed his mother, and, because I like a good feud, will definitely have Lambda tell him. I should mention that, only for the prologue, I will have everyone's favorite Half-Jaw, R'tas Vadum, in the story. This is only because Alex will be having his mother's armor shipped and R'tas is the only being who has a ship fast enough to get it to him by the needed time that Alex knows. Most of the prologue will be with Alex being on the _Shadow of Intent_ , but he will arrive at the new PF CC(Project Freelancer Command Center) by the end of it. Also, last thing, but I changed the last name. Not much, I just switched the first e and a in the last name to make it Velasquez, instead of Valesquez. Anyway, I'll shut up now, and onto the story!**

"Okay," Alex said, smirking and narrowing his eyes playfully, "shoot." He finished, the woman across from him merely staring at him for a second, as if unsure what Alex meant. "Oh no. You're ONI aren't you?" He asked, the woman stuttering in surprise.

"Wha-what? No! No, of course not." The woman answered, Alex smirking deeper.

"Oh? Then why didn't you ask the question?" He asked, the woman clearing their throat.

"Well, you said to shoot, so I thought you meant literally." The woman answered, Alex sighing and slumping over in disappointment.

"Just...just ask the question before _I_ shoot _you_." He said, the woman sitting up straiter.

"Well, I've been sent by a woman from a new little program to ask you if you want to join. The rebirth of one of the most infamous programs in the universe. The rebirth of Project Freelancer!" The woman said, Alex freezing in surprise at this, something that was noticed by the woman. "Of course, I understand if you don't want to join, what with what happened to your parents." The woman added, Alex smiling sadistically.

"No. I want to join. I want a shot at the bastard who managed to take out my mother." Alex said, the woman getting visibly nervous.

"Oh. Okay. Well, I'll have you clear it with your CO, and you will be shipped out to the command center, the _Father Of Creation_." The woman said, Alex nodding and watching her leave, then opened his data-pad and called his house back on Earth, hoping that Maria would pick up. Maria was the woman that took care of his house while he was on duty.

"Hello? Alex is that you?" Maria asked, Alex looking at the door to make sure the woman was gone.

"Hey Maria. Listen, I need you to ship the armor. L' too." He said, Maria being quiet for a moment. "Maria?"

"Oh, sorry. Of course. By when should it arrive?" She asked, Alex smirking lightly.

"By yesterday." He answered, Maria sighing.

"I'll call HJ." She said, Alex saying goodbye and ending the call.

"Now...what to pack and what not to pack?" He asked himself, looking around. Shrugging, he grabbed his standard issue ODST sidearm and placed it in the holster on his ODST armor, which was currently on an armor rack by his bed. "I think that will be all I need, actually. Maybe some spare clothes. Meh." He said, shrugging and deciding to watch some television while he waited.

A few hours later, his data-pad rung, Alex nearly falling out of bed to get to it. After untangling himself from the sheets and grabbing it, he saw that it was Maria.

"Hello?" He asked, answering it.

"He said he'll bring it, but you owe him." She said, Alex chuckling.

"I thought this made us even." He said, Maria chuckling too.

"I said that too. He answered that you previously asked him to glass a section of that Innie planet when you and your squad got held down." Maria said, Alex sighing.

"I told him to bombard it. Apparently he thought I meant with the Ventral Beam. I hardly see how asking something of him in a warzone is a favor, especially when he had troops on the ground too!" Alex exclaimed, Maria making a sound of confusion.

"Huh. I don't know. Ask him when you see him." Maria said, hanging up.

Alex put down the data-pad and looked around, noticing a small, glowing object in the chair the woman had sat in. He picked it up and noticed it held a number for him to contact if he needed to.

He grabbed his data-pad again and entered the number, waiting as it rung.

"Hello? Is this Alex?" The woman from before asked, Alex becoming momentarily confused.

"Yes. I just wanted to let you know that I'll be arriving at the FoC with a friend, he's dropping me off." Alex said, the quiet sigh of discomfort barely audible from the other side.

"Are you sure? It's no problem for our pilot to come and bring you." The woman said, her obvious tone of begging making Alex realize there was something they didn't want any random civvie to know.

"I'm positive. He's dropping something off for me anyway." Alex said in his no-nonsense tone, the woman chuckling nervously.

"Of course. I'll notify the FoC when I arrive. Who shall we wait for?" She asked, Alex smirking.

"You'll know them when you see them." He said, terminating the call.

Thinking himself done for the day, Alex lay down and went to sleep.

 ** _###_**

Waking up at around oh-five-hundred hours, Alex put on his ODST armor and made sure he hadn't slept through any messages or calls. Satisfied he had none, he walked out the door and told the receptionist that he was checking out. He paid the man and walked out, walking to the town's military base to make sure they knew about his friend's impending arrival.

Arriving at nearly oh-five-thirty hours, Alex knocked on the door to the general's office and was told to enter.

"Ah, Alex Velasquez. Ready for duty already?" He asked, clearly surprised.

"No, actually. I came to tell you that-" Alex was interrupted by the general's data-pad ringing, Alex already knowing what it probably was.

"Sorry." The General said, answering the call. "What is it? I'm busy." He said, Alex merely watching. "What!? A Covenant Supercarrier!?" The general shouted, Alex huffing lightly. "Wait, the Shipmaster is requesting to land a Phantom? Why?" The general asked, Alex waiting for it to click for the man. "To deliver something? For who? Actually, don't answer that. I already know. Give them permission." The general said, ending the call and looking at Alex. "I assume that's what you were going to tell me about?" He asked, Alex nodding. "You couldn't have told me sooner?"

"I'm an ODST, sir, not a Spartan." Alex said, the general sighing. "Sorry, sir, but I'm afraid that I'm gonna have to resign. Someone recently came to me with an offer I can't resist. I'm sorry." Alex added, the general sighing.

"I understand, son. I understand. Good luck." The general said, extending his hand, Alex shaking it.

"Goodbye, sir. Give 'em Hell for me." Alex said, turning around and leaving.

A few minutes later, Alex was at the designated landing zone for where the Phantom was going to land. He watched, helmet in the crook of his arm and depolarized, as the purple speck that was the Phantom slowly got larger, until it was only a few hundred feet above the ground, where it proceeded to slow down until it landed, and R'tas Vadum himself exited the Phantom, followed by two clearly surprised Rangers.

"When he said ally, I did not think he meant a human." One of the Rangers said to the other, who merely stared at Alex. "Why does a human require Demon armor?" The Ranger asked R'tas, who looked at the Ranger with a look that said he wanted him to shut up, which he did.

"It's Spartan, Ranger, not Demon. And it's actually designed to fit someone without the enhancements Spartans have. Of course it's better to have the augmentations, but not required." Alex said, the Rangers looking at him, it's domed helmet hiding the probable snarl of anger at him, even if they are technically allies.

"Ranger! Be respectful! Even if you don't like the humans, I ask that you at least respect him as a warrior!" R'tas commanded, the other Ranger merely looking towards the Ranger that commanded R'tas' wrath.

"Shipmaster R'tas Vadum. As a fellow warrior, I assure you that I can handle anything they say. Believe me when I say any insult I've ever had from Sangheili is not as bad as what I endured from my drill instructor during my ODST training. I actually like it when they try and insult us humans, so, if they have an opinion they want known, I ask they speak it. Of course, you outrank me, so feel free to order them otherwise." Alex said, the Rangers looking at him in what he thought was probably surprise at how casually he talked to the Shipmaster.

"I know that to be true, however, they have been trained to show respect to a fellow warrior, no matter the race." R'tas responded, Alex nodding.

"Oh, right. R'tas, I know you agreed to deliver the armor, but my ride to the location has been detained for flying too close to an insurrectionist planet while possessing UNSC markings, but will be released when they are cleared. This means I must ask that you take me to my location. I assure you that I would not ask if it wasn't necessary, but it is and I apologize for the inconvenience. I know you need to get back to your planet due to the Remnants still performing small attacks, but I have no other choice." Alex said, R'tas giving no clue he heard but the twitch of a mandible.

"Of course. However, you still owe me." R'tas answered, Alex letting out a breath of relief, albeit quietly.

"At least you picked some human slang up from talking to me. You finished that novel I sent you?" He asked, R'tas chuckling deeply.

"It was certainly good. However, your translation skills need some work. There were some words mistranslated that meant some rather...sensitive material." R;tas said, Alex tilting his head lightly.

"Um, no. I had an expert on your language translate it. They assured me that it was all correctly translated, assuming your language hasn't changed." Alex said, R'tas blinking in surprise.

"You mean...that the detailed acts of..." R'tas trailed off, Alex noticing the Rangers look at each other in what he assumed what surprise.

"Yes. Properly translated." Alex answered, nodding.

"You humans have a strange sense of fiction." R'tas mumbled.

"Trust me, there are weirder. Things I'm sure that your Arbiter would certainly find...interesting. In a horrified and disgusted way, but interesting nonetheless. Same goes for you." Alex said, R'tas finally noticing they were still on the landing pad and telling him he could get on, which Alex did.

"I still think that the Shipmaster is being too lenient with the human's behavior." The left Ranger whispered to the other, who merely looked at him, then at Alex and shrugged.

"It's not our place to say." The Ranger answered, it's voice sounding a little more high-pitched than normal, something that Alex, the other Ranger, and R'tas picked up on immediately.

"The first time you speak since joining the crew, and it's defending a human. Females." The other Ranger said, not noticing the glare both R'tas and Alex both threw his way.

"Baka..." R'tas growled out, Alex looking at the female Ranger as the ship continued climbing.

"Baka's a pretty...odd name." Alex said, the female Ranger shrugging at him, then looking at Ranger Baka.

"Just so it's clear, I'm not defending a human. I'm reminding you that when the Shipmaster makes a decision, it. Is. _Not_. _Questioned_." She growled, Alex shuffling over to R'tas' side.

"Normally I'd bet on the female Ranger, but I'm not in a betting mood and this needs to be stopped before it turns into a fight. In my opinion, that is." Alex said, R'tas looking at him.

"Then by all means, stop it." He said, motioning with his hand towards the now in-each-other's-face Rangers.

"...On second thought, I think I'm in a betting mood." Alex said, earning a chuckle from R'tas. "But sure, I'll stop it." He added, R'tas shrugging in indifference.

Alex sighed and walked towards the two Rangers, Ranger Baka looking at him while the female Ranger continued to look at Ranger Baka.

"If you two are gonna fight over something this trivial, wait until we arrive at the _Shadow of Intent_." Alex said, Ranger Baka growling at him.

"If you wish to stop it, then challenge me." Ranger Baka responded, Alex visibly becoming fearful.

"Thanks for the offer, but I'd rather keep my life." Alex said, turning to walk back towards R'tas.

"Oh, you mean that the human that earned this female's interest is afraid of me? Did your mother raise a coward?" Ranger Baka asked, Alex stopping and, to the surprise of everyone but R'tas, spun and delivered a punch straight to Ranger Baka's helmet, shattering it and continuing into his mandibles, where a resounding _snap_ was heard, Baka screaming in pain as his mandibles shattered and the glass from his visor embedded itself into his face. Baka fell to the ground, clutching his face and continuing to scream in agony.

"Hard to raise a coward when you're dead." Alex answered, walking back over to R'tas and shoving his helmet on, the visor polarizing. "...Think I went too far?" He asked, earning a head shake from the female Ranger.

"For what he said? Of course not. Probably should have warned them myself." R'tas answered him, Alex shrugging.

"He wouldn't care. To him, I'm just a little human with a problem with honor. Now I'm a little human with a problem with honor _and_ that just broke all four of his mandibles because he said something sensitive. He's lucky, though. If we'd met before the alliance, when our races were just starting to work together after the Great Schism, I'd have killed him. Well, probably. That or break his legs." Alex said, surprising the female Ranger and R'tas, both of their heads moving back in surprise.

"Shipmaster! We will be arriving soon! Shall I call ahead and tell them to get the medical team ready?" The pilot asked, Alex suddenly wondering if this was a good idea now that he'd just crippled a Sangheili's mandibles for about two or so weeks.

"No! Let him make his way to them himself!" R'tas answered, the pilot not speaking for a few moments.

"Of course, Shipmaster! Will not call ahead!" The pilot finally said, Alex looking at the female Ranger, who merely looked at him, then at Ranger Baka, who had reduced his pained noises to a quiet whimper.

A few minutes later, they landed on the _Shadow of Intent_ and Alex was shown to his quarters by the female Ranger, Alex knowing that R'tas was merely doing it to try and goad Ranger Baka again, and Alex was actually looking forward to showing him what a human could do again, much to his own surprise.

The door to Alex's temporary quarters opened, and Alex walked in to begin taking off his ODST armor while the female Ranger watched from the door, then took her helmet off.

"You mentioned that your mother is dead earlier. Might I ask what happened?" The female Ranger asked, Alex tensing briefly, then relaxing and sitting on the levitating bed, motioning the Ranger to sit next to him, which she reluctantly did.

"To be honest, I don't know the exact details. All I really know is that she bled out after being stabbed repeatedly. I don't know who killed her. I only know how she died. I do know her name too, though." Alex answered, sighing as the female Ranger placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"If this information pains you to speak of, then don't." She said, Alex smiling lightly.

"You asked. It's only fair I deliver." Alex responded, shrugging lightly.

"Still, I do not wish to upset you by asking for private information." The female Ranger answered, Alex raising an eyebrow in question. "I mean, because you are a guest, of course." She added, Alex chuckling lightly at her sudden awkwardness.

"I knew what you meant, but it's better that you clarified. More for your sake than mine, but still better." Alex said, the female Ranger letting out an exaggerated breath of relief. "I see R'tas isn't the only one that knows what sarcasm is." He said, earning a slight chuckle from the female Ranger.

"Like your stories, you humans have a weird sense of humor." She said, Alex chuckling.

"And like our stories, there are far weirder." He countered, earning a huff of surprise.

"You mentioned earlier that there are things that would interest the Arbiter, albeit in a disgusting and horrifying way. What did you mean?" She asked, Alex sighing.

"Okay. If you remember, I mentioned a novel I gave to R'tas. Ask if you can read it, and you'll understand what I mean." he explained, the female Ranger tilting her head.

"What is this novel called?" She asked, Alex looking towards the door quickly.

"It's an extremely old story that came out over five-hundred years ago. If you read it, you'll probably understand why it became popular, and stayed popular for so long. It's called ' _Fifty Shades of Grey_ '." He answered, the Ranger looking confused. "I know, the title's confusing. I don't really understand it either." He added, shrugging.

"I am still curious about what you meant by weirder." She said, Alex holding up a finger.

"I'm getting to that. In a normal human's day, some of them choose to write something we call 'fanfiction'. Basically what that is, is when a person writes a story about a subject that didn't actually happen, but would have been an interesting extension to that subject's universe. Well, people also write something called 'lemons'. These lemons are basically detailed acts of mating between two characters. Well...people have taken it to themselves to write fanfictions, lemons included, about the Spartan known as the Master Chief, and your race's Arbiter." Alex said, the female Ranger looking at the floor and blushing profusely. "Oh my God." Alex said, the Ranger looking at him.

"What?" She asked, Alex struggling not to laugh at how funny a Sangheili looked when blushing.

"Nothing. I've just never seen someone of your species blush before. It's a little..." He trailed off, trying to find a word that wouldn't offend her pride.

"Cute?" She asked, Alex stuttering. Now it was his time to blush and look at the floor.

"I was gonna say funny, but I didn't want to hurt your pride. Last time that happened, R'tas almost threw me out of the gravity well." He said, the Ranger getting ready to ask a question. "Without it being turned on." He added, earning a wide-eyed look of shock from the Ranger. "Yeah. Not the best one to mess with, R'tas is. Even playfully teasing him." Alex added, shrugging.

"I see..." The female Ranger said, nodding lightly.

"Alex! Ranger Baka 'Nrafum has requested a duel for his honor as a warrior. He has also requested that Ranger Xoxi 'Dragum be present to 'witness who the greater warrior is in a real fight'. He also apologizes for being stupid and having no knowledge of judgement or common sense." R'tas called from the closed door, the female Ranger looking at Alex questioningly, who merely stood up and walked to the door, his proximity to it opening it.

"You added that last part to get a laugh out of me didn't you?" He asked, R'tas growling in frustration.

"I should've known you'd figure that out. No matter how much I learn about your human sarcasm, you always know when I'm being sarcastic." R'tas growled, Alex rolling his eyes.

"That's because you learn from me." Alex said, the female Ranger, who Alex assumed was Xoxi, walking to the door.

"Oh. I was unaware you two were in the same room...alone." R'tas said, Alex choking on his own saliva at the bold comment.

"We weren't-it's not li-why would you say that!?" Alex shouted, his arms flailing in his anger, Xoxi getting the hint.

"That was a bold comment, even for you, R'tas." She said, R'tas shrugging and turning to walk down the hall.

"You two coming?" He called over his shoulder, having turned to see them still standing there, with Alex bent over and hacking at the sudden buildup of saliva he kept choking on in his anger.

"Give. Me. A. Moment." Alex said, holding up a finger. "Okay. I think I'm good." Alex said, standing up and following R'tas, followed by Xoxi.

"Don't forget your combat gear." R'tas reminded Alex, who groaned and walked back into the room, walking back out with his ODST gear on a few moments later.

The group arrived at the ship's version of a workout room with a boxing arena, minus the workout room...and the ropes to keep you from falling out...and the actual arena.

"Wait, so you just fight in the center, and the others watch from the wall?" Alex asked, Xoxi shaking her head, then pointing above them. Alex looked up, seeing a lot of nearly invisible cameras, which he knew were linked to some kind of terminal in the different rooms that the Sangheili were in.

The door on the opposite end of the room opened, Ranger Baka 'Nrafum entered the room, a new helmet hiding the probable visceral scars and other wounds from earlier, as well as whatever they had his mandibles wrapped in to keep them from flapping about.

"You will pay for earlier." Baka said, a device on his throat translating his throat movements into words.

"Before we fight, I have a question. You wanna know what Baka means on our planet?" Alex asked, Baka turning his head slightly, as if thinking, then looked back at Alex.

"Sure. What does it mean on Earth?" He asked, Alex smirking under his helmet.

"It's a Japanese word that means idiot, or stupid..." He began, raising his fists and entering a combat stance. "...Baka." He finished, a roar of anger coming from the sound translation device.

-Begin song Le Bien Qui Fait Mal-

As Ranger Baka 'Nrafum charged at him, Alex turned and ran towards the wall as he got within twenty feet, and jumped at the wall, flipping off of it and over Baka as he slammed into the wall. Alex slammed a fist into the armor in the middle of Baka's back, then ducked and rolled backwards as the Ranger turned and swung a wide back-hand at Alex's head level.

Alex attempted to slam a fist into Baka's chest, but Baka grabbed it and slowly twisted it, then threw it towards Alex's own face, but Alex manged to twist with the blow and stay on his feet.

Alex dodged a few blows before slamming a fist into the Ranger's knee, which bent the wrong way just enough to pop, but stay in it's socket and stay usable. Baka gasped in pain, clutching his knee.

Alex jumped up and slammed a knee into Baka's helmet, only applying enough force to knock him back, not break it again.

Baka then managed to punch Alex in the gut, Alex gasping and dropping to the floor. Baka then kicked him in the side, making him flip over and onto his back, where Baka delivered yet another punch to his gut.

Alex dodged an attempted third strike to his chest and-or gut area by rolling away, then turning the roll into a backflip and landing on his feet.

"Your endurance is that of a Spartan, human. Yet you are a simple ODST. Impressive, I suppose." Baka said, Alex nodding to show his gratitude at the compliment.

"You aren't so bad yourself, Baka. However...I've already won." Alex said, earning a surprise look from the Ranger.

"What do you mean?" He asked, Alex pointing behind him, which made Baka turn around.

"Baka." Alex said, using the insult version this time. He then ran forward, stopped, and dropped, swinging a foot out at Ranger Baka 'Nrafum's own feet. Baka jumped up to dodge it, only for Alex to jump and spin, his foot connecting to the side of Baka's helmet, knocking him unconscious and sending him crashing to the ground a good five feet away.

-End song Le Bien Qui Fait Mal-

"I suppose I did see who the better warrior was after all." Ranger Xoxi 'Dragum said, Alex shrugging.

"He would have won had he not fallen for that trick." Alex said, Xoxi rolling her eyes, then suddenly turning around and facing the door, activating her Type-1 Energy Sword as a trio of angry Minors came in, their blue armor obviously brand new as there was not a single scratch on them, their own Energy Swords activated.

"Surrender the human, female." The one in front, and larger, one ordered.

"Just because I'm female does not mean I am going to follow every order like your slave." Xoxi countered, Alex reaching for the combat knife on his left shoulder.

Suddenly, the door behind Alex opened and in stepped R'tas Vadum, who, upon seeing the three Minors, growled and walked up to them, all three shrinking in fear.

"What is the meaning of this?" He asked the trio of Minors, the larger one swallowing.

"We suspected the human of cheating in the due-" however, his sentence was cut off as R'tas back-handed him with enough force to send him crashing to the ground ten feet away, the other two dropping their Energy Swords and running back through the door from which they came.

"Meh. We could've taken 'em if we had to." Alex said, shrugging and letting go of the handle on his combat knife.

"You never know when to back down do you?" Xoxi asked, Alex shrugging.

"Not how I grew up." He answered, walking through the door to his quarters.

"He's a strange human." Xoxi muttered, sighing and looking at R'tas, as if asking for the answers to her unspoken questions.

"As I'm sure you know, his mother was killed when he was young. He grew up without anyone to really teach him how his race behaved and reacted to threats. He became fascinated with our race and our sense of honor and fairness for reasons even he doesn't understand. Of course, I managed to get into contact with his mother's old comrades in her squad for the Orbital Drop Shock Troopers. I asked them about his mother when they calmed down enough to talk, and they told me that, during the fall of their colony world Reach, her and one of our own were forced to team up to survive after they were both left behind. To them, they had no war to fight, only a harsh and unforgiving landscape to survive. They parted ways upon escaping, and that male eventually made it to the Halo ring known as Installation 04, where he lost half of his jaw to a former comrade infected by the Flood." R'tas finished, Xoxi gaping at him. "I never even realized that they were of blood until then. I've treated him like a warrior ever since. Even if it was more for his mother's actions than his own abilities." He added, the door that Alex had left through opening, Alex walking back through. "Oh, hello Alex." R'tas said, clearly surprised.

"I can't remember if I asked or not, but how long will it take to get there?" Alex asked. Xoxi had thought he was gonna ask that R'tas knew his mother, so she was surprised when he didn't.

"Roughly a few more hours, close to two or three, in your time." R'tas answered, both of the Sangheili wondering when the question would come.

"Oh, okay. Thanks." Alex said, nodding to them both before leaving.

"Usually when a door opens after an important revelation, the person mentioned questions about the revelation's authenticy in an incredibly emotional state. But then again, Alex Velasquez never was one for doing the expected. Or being emotional." R'tas muttered, shaking his head and turning to walk back through the door he had come from, leaving Xoxi to stand there, confused on what to do.

After standing there for a few minutes, Xoxi finally decided to go back to Alex, in order to continue their previous discussion. However, the door didn't open upon her approaching it, which meant that it had been locked, something that happened very rarely unless they were asleep.

She knocked on the door, then stood back.

"Alex? May I come in?" She called, surprised when, not even a second later, the door opened, but either Alex was faster than he let on, or he hadn't moved, because he was still on the bed. "How...did you unlock it without leaving the bed?" She asked, surprised because she didn't know it was possible.

Alex chose not to speak, instead holding up a small object Xoxi recognised as something the humans used to move their AI from one object to another; a neural-interfaced AI chip.

"I thought that regular warriors, even elite warriors such as yourself, didn't have the kind of uplink necessary to carry an AI." She pointed out, Alex shrugging.

"We don't. Doesn't mean I can't keep him with me, right?" He asked, although it sounded like a statement.

"What is his...designation, I believe is the word." She asked, Alex placing the chip in a section of his armor, near the breastplate, where she assumed he had something to keep it from falling out.

"Project Freelancer Artificial Intelligence Program Fragment LMDA-11-009183542, also known as Lambda. He is an AI from the original Project Freelancer, more than fifteen years ago. He has escaped the effects of Rampancy via lockdown code Sierra-Foxtrot-198472, which dictates that any and all Smart AI be placed in their equivalent of cryosleep if they are expected be be away from a facility that can safely decommission them for longer than their life-expectancy at that point in time." Alex answered, Xoxi just staring at him. "And I've lost you, haven't I?" He asked, Xoxi shaking her head as if to clear it.

"My apologies, it's just a lot to take in that I..." Xoxi began, though stopped when she saw that Alex was shaking his head in that odd human way that showed they thought something funny. The movement had always confused her, since it seemed strange to her that someone would shake their head when they thought something funny, but she didn't question it.

"It's okay, Xoxi. Really." He said, chuckling. "If it confuses you, it's okay. If there is one thing I hate, it's people that try and act like they know and understand everything. It's stupid. Not even the Forerunners knew everything. That much is made obvious by the fact they made the Halo rings in the first place. If they knew everything, they could have predicted the Flood, and made better weapons to combat it. Instead, they did the one thing any civilization does when faced with annihilation, they panicked and decided that if they couldn't destroy the Flood, then everyone would pay for their failure. They fired the Halo rings when they could have just done what the Covenant did to human colonies. They could have just destroyed the planets with confirmed Graveminds, then traced the path of destruction caused by the Flood until they found where it originated from. Destroy the home, you destroy the species' best place for a final stand in the event of dominance. It only makes sense." Alex said, Xoxi just staring at him in surprise, her mandibles slightly agape in shock. Suddenly, Alex remembered that there were some Sangheili who still worshipped the Forerunners. "You don't still revere them, do you?" He asked, suddenly conscious of his wording.

"No. I'm just...surprised. Your statement made more sense than the recordings of the Prophets' speeches I've seen, is all." She answered, Alex letting out a breath in relief. That was when she remembered something Alex told her about his AI. "You said that AI contain override codes to shut down when expected to be out of reach of decommission facilities, so how did your AI open the door?" She asked, Alex sighing.

"Don't tell R'tas, but Lambda has a Fragment placed in the _Shadow of Intent_ 's systems. It's passive, so it can only control things like doors and the occasional unencrypted data burst. But it mostly sticks to doors." He answered, shrugging. "It can't access anything to do with weapons, so the worst it can do is lock you inside a room and, if they're accessible, remove the override codes. But he can't depressurize the atmosphere or access the oxygen circulation of the room, so anyone at a console on the bridge could probably open the door." Alex added, Xoxi blinking in surprise.

"For a passive Fragment of a Fragment, he sure can do some pretty aggressive things." She remarked, earning a shrug from Alex.

Quite suddenly and unexpectedly, Alex released a heavy sigh, a look of something akin to a cross between sadness and defeat appearing on his face.

"Is something wrong?" Xoxi asked, Alex shaking his head sadly

"It's just...you're probably the first person to treat me like...a friend. You need to know I'm not like I pretend to be. I pretend to be this nice, caring person but...I'm not like that. I haven't been like that in over fifteen years. I'm cold, uncaring, and ruthless. That's what happens when you have nobody to turn to in the worst moments of your life. I almost caved when I fought Baka. I almost killed him, Xoxi. Just because he didn't know something and made a comment that hurt more than any of the physical wounds I've received." Alex stated, standing up and shrugging her off when she attempted to place a hand on his shoulder.

"Alex yo-"

"No! I want you to listen, Xoxi! This isn't me! It's just me trying to seem normal. This is the first time in my life I've been treated like I'm normal. Like I'm not the emotional time-bomb that I am. All my life I've been treated like I'm special. Like I deserve to be treated kindly because I've been through Hell at a young age! The only people who deserve anything...are the _bastards_ who took away the only good thing I had in my life. They'll get what's coming to them. And everyone else who allows others to do the same." He finished, having made his way to the door, which opened right as the alarm for exiting Slipspace sounded. He looked over his shoulder back at her, his voice cracking slightly. "Goodbye, Xoxi." He said, walking out the door and slipping on his helmet, the visor polarizing.

Alex made his way to the hanger, not that surprised to see R'tas standing by a Phantom which hovered slightly, showing it was on. As he made to board, he stopped when a hand was placed on his shoulder. He was surprised to see Ranger Baka there, helmet still donned.

"Take care, Alex. And may you find peace in the end." He said, moving to turn away when Alex placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You as well, Ranger. And take care of her. At least from afar." He said, Baka nodding. "And may we meet on the other side." He added, turning and boarding the Pelican, followed by R'tas. Just as the doors began to close, Alex saw Xoxi run through the door he had entered from, and he felt the familiar pang of regret as the Phantom edged out of the hanger, as he was forced to leave his only friend behind.

"Megszakad a szivem." Alex murmured, earning a glance from R'tas.

"You tell her?" R'tas asked, Alex merely nodding, his hands clenching.

"I wish things could've been different. But, no point in wishing. Only thing you can do is expect the worst and hope for the best. My life's just been more worse than best." Alex murmured, his head hanging.

"She may be a Ranger, but she still thinks people can do no evil. It's her naivety at work." R'tas said, Alex shaking his head.

"She's not naïve. She just tries to find the best in people. There isn't enough good in me to be helped though." Alex responded, suddenly looking towards R'tas. "I told Baka this, but take care, and take care of her. And may we meet on the other side." Alex told him as the Phantom entered the hanger of the _Father of Invention._

As Alex stepped out, followed by R'tas, he was surprised to find the hanger empty...save for the twenty odd people aiming Battle Rifles at them.

"Well this is certainly...unkind." R'tas muttered, his words earning at least half of the BR's moving from overlapping fields of fire to centered on him.

"Should be easy. Notice their stances. Minors." Alex said, earning a "hey!" from someone in the group

"Son, I'll have you know everyone on this ship is of the legally required age of enlistment." Someone else, presumably the CO, told him, Alex rolling his eyes behind his polarized visor.

"I meant the rank. Although the clarification is certainly...appreciated." Alex told the man, his voice losing it's fake light-heartedness and turning cold at the word "appreciated."

"Oh. I assume it's a Covenant rank then. My apologies for the mistake. Not to be rude, but is there a reason that there is currently a CAS-class Assault Carrier at outside of our weapons range?" The man asked, Alex tensing lightly.

"Well...had to get here somehow." Alex answered, smirking under his helmet when the man glanced towards R'tas, and a flicker of fear crossed his face. "Also it's his, so be respectful." Alex said, walking past him and to a door behind him. He looked at the man over his shoulder. "Wouldn't want anything to get...messy...would we?" He asked darkly, the man gulping and shaking his head, Alex jerking his head for R'tas to follow, the Sangheili lifting the pod his mother's Freelancer armor was contained in and walking past the group, pausing to snap his mandibles towards the CO, who shrank back, earning a chuckle from R'tas.

"You humans think you're tough. Yet you cower when opposed by a superior force. Hypocrites." R'tas said, a man rolling his eyes.

"Technically, you didn't win either." He retorted, Alex looking back.

"Will we have a problem? Don't wanna leave any bad impressions on my first day." Alex said, his tone implying he didn't care.

"Of course not. Sorry." The man said, Alex and R'tas walking away.

"Sorry to make you carry that, R'tas. I'm sure it must be heavy. Or at least relatively compared to humans." Alex told him, the Shipmaster grunting.

"Only a little." The Shipmaster answered a moment later.

"I'll go see where to take that. Try not to kill anybody." Alex said, nodding and walking down the hall as R'tas set down the pod and sat on an elongated chair, a bench, if his memory was correct.

Alex made his way through the halls, finally walking into a large room, then noticed it had a gathering of around fifty-nine people, not counting the two on the elevated platform. He walked over to the platform and motioned to the woman he had met in the hotel room. She walked down and over to him.

"Hello Alex. I think I know what you meant when you said I'd know your escort when I saw it. Is there something you wanted to ask?" the lady asked him, Alex nodding.

"Is there a room assigned to me yet? I have something I'd like to take to a room if possible." Alex answered, the lady shaking her head.

"Not yet. Although, we can put it in storage until after you get your augmentations to better fit the armor we have."

"I guess that will work." Alex said, nodding.

"Welcome to Project Freelancer 2.0, better name pending. Get your possession, get it to storage, then make your way to the medical deck. We have a few recruits to weed out." The woman said with a smirk, Alex nodding and making a mental note to find out everything possible about this woman.

"Of course ma'am. Oh, and tell your crew not to shoot at the Phantom that's gonna leave soon." He said, earning a slight nod. After getting the nod, Alex turned and walked back towards R'tas, only to find a group of soldiers having cornered R'tas into a room and jeering at him, while doing his best to ignore them, but Alex saw his lower mandible twitch, a sign of pent-up anger. Apparently he was taking Alex's advice to heart and attempting to hold back his pride.

Alex took off his helmet, set it down quietly and pressing a button, and walked up behind the group of soldiers and tapped the middle two on their shoulders, and when they turned around, grabbed both of them by their throats and, with a barely audible grunt of exertion, lifted them up.

"Is there a problem here, boys?" Alex asked, the two flanking soldiers each swinging a fist at his head, only for Alex to back up and bring the two soldiers he was holding lower, the fists connecting to their heads, which Alex used as additional force to smash their heads together, knocking them out. "I guess so." He answered himself, smirking and kicking one soldier in the knee, snapping it with an audible crack loud enough to make R'tas visibly flinch, if only slightly, then blocked an attempted stab by the other who had pulled a knife. "I guess no one ever told you not to bring a knife to a gun fight." Alex told him, drawing his standard issue SOCOM and shooting the man with eleven bullets in the stomach. Alex pushed away the body and then turned to the man whose knee he had kicked, aiming the gun at him. The man looked genuinely terrified and began to pray, when Alex flipped it around and held it towards him, grip first.

The man hesitantly took it, and Alex turned away, walking towards his helmet when he saw the man point the pistol at him in his visor, then quickly unsheathed his knife and spun, throwing it into the man's throat. He then walked over and picked up the pistol, but not before picking up his helmet and pressing the button again, taking out the empty clip and showing it to R'tas, who huffed.

"Even for you, Alex, that was cruel." He told him, Alex shrugging.

"Needed a reason to empty my meter. This was perfect." He responded, then held up a finger when R'tas made to speak. "No, I did not orchestrate this."

"Okay. I was worried there for a second." R'tas muttered.

"Oh, one second." Alex said, turning away and his head tilting down as if looking at the ground. "L, the vid. Data chip. Now." He ordered as he held his left arm bottom up, a universal data chip popping out from his left gauntlet's underside. He caught the chip as it spun in the air, then turned and held it out to R'tas. "Give this to Xoxi." He said, R'tas staring at him dumbfounded.

"You...recorded that?" R'tas finally asked, taking the chip hesitantly. "Are you _trying_ to make her hate you?" He asked as Alex turned and started taking off his ODST armor and opening the pod, putting on his mother's old armor and putting the ODST armor into the pod, but grabbing another data chip from the breastplate first.

"No." Alex answered, walking towards the door, looking over his shoulder for the second or third time that day. "Proving a point." With that said, Alex walked out of the room and leaving a shocked R'tas, who wondered whether or not he should just crush the chip and keep this event to himself. He finally decided against it, since it would go against the trust Alex had in him.

-Random POV Switch-

R'tas had made it back to the _Shadow of Intent_ with the only damage being to his pride from the human soldiers' jeering. He walked to Xoxi's room, chip in hand, and wondered for the fiftieth time that human hour if this was really the right thing to do. On one hand, it may make her feel depressed and possibly kill herself, which would weigh on him forever. On the other he could betray the trust of Alex and not give it to her, then lose some of her loyalty when she found out he kept important information from her, which would weigh heavily on him. Either way was a potential lose-lose for him.

He approached Xoxi's door, only to have it open and reveal Xoxi laying on the bed.

"Oh, Shipmaster! If I'd have known you were coming I would have...well, probably not done anything, since I'm still decent, and I don't think there is anything else that would make me more prepared." Xoxi said, performing the Sangheili version of a frown. "Hm."

"Well, I guess I was right; Alex actually did put a piece of his AI in the ship." R'tas muttered, Xoxi looking away at the remark.

"Um, well...yeah." She said, R'tas chuckling. "Is there something you wanted to tell me?" She asked, R'tas sighing.

"Alex asked me to give this to you." He answered, Xoxi's expression brightening, which then faded quickly. She took the data chip, R'tas nodding to her and walking away, leaving her to walk over to the terminal in the corner and place the chip into it.

She sat down on the bed as she watched the video play, her expression quickly turning to something of horror as she watched Alex kill the two humans, leaving her with a feeling of being betrayed as she saw him let loose.

She sat there in silence, thoughts racing through her confused brain faster than she could mentally say them. She squeaked quietly when there was a knock at her door, then mentally chastised herself. She walked over and opened the door, slightly surprised to see Ranger Baka 'Nrafum standing there.

"Oh! Hello, Baka." She said, her fellow Ranger nodding and looking at the beginning of the paused video, grunting in surprise.

"What's that?" He asked, Xoxi sighing.

"Come watch." She said, sitting on the bed and beckoning him over. He walked over and sat down next to her as she played the video, taking his helmet off to be polite. He watched as Alex killed the two humans, his respect and fear growing for the human after the video ended.

"I don't know what to think about him anymore, Baka. He told me he wasn't like how he acted on the ship, and he proved it here, but I still think he's a good person. I don't know what to do." She finally said, Baka sighing.

"The only thing you _can_ do is continue to hold hope. If what he said is true, then it goes to show that he was truly trying to be good when he with with R'tas. If R'tas knew his true nature, he accepts Alex for it, and that means we should too. I made him a promise, Xoxi, and I intend to keep it, whatever he's really like." Baka told her, standing up and walking out.

"I'm gonna miss him." She muttered, shaking her head.

-Back to Alex-

Alex entered the medical wing and earned a gasp or two of surprise from the medics. He glared at one from behind the curvy t-shaped visor, which shut them up.

"Oh, hello! If you don't mind me asking, where'd you get that armor?" One of them asked, the name-tag reading " _Dr. Emily Gray_ ", and a sticky note under that said 'WARNING! Possible psychological problems. Do not antagonize. Failure to follow rule rewards with possible death/mutilation and/or PTSD as well as any form of phobias involving anything with doctors. Have a nice day! Signed, Emily Gray.'

"My mother. She was a Freelancer from the original program. California was her designation." He answered, Dr. Gray immediately perking up.

"Your name wouldn't happen to be Alex Valesquez, would it?" She asked, Alex narrowing his eyes behind his visor.

"Who's asking?" He asked, Dr. Gray looking down and to the left, indicating her name-tag "I meant why do you care?" He asked, Dr. Gray having looked up at him.

"Oh! An old friend talked about you sometimes is all, telling me stories about how her friend had a son named Alex. Talked about her a lot. Never mentioned what happened to her though. Little weird." She answered, Alex gasping silently.

"Was your old friend called Carolina, by any chance?" He asked, now leaning forward slightly.

"Um...yeah. You know her?" Dr. Gray asked, tilting her head.

"I haven't seen her since I was around nine. I mean, I recently heard she and the Reds, Blues, and Washington were on Chorus, but other than when I was nine, I haven't had any contact with her or the others." He said, Dr. Gray obviously interested.

"Did you ever meet Church, the leader of the Blues?" Dr. Gray asked, Alex becoming worried slightly.

"Yeah, once. Why?" He asked, Dr. Gray sighing.

"He sacrificed himself in order to power the Meta's armor for Tucker. He was starting to become inoperable, so he was forced to. Sorry." She told him, Alex beginning to feel the feeling of a panic attack setting in. It was odd, really. He hadn't had one since his first ODST drop in his "Space Coffin" as he called it. He knew why it was happening. It was due to him finally exploding. The time on his emotion time-bomb had run out; the floodgates opened.

The next thing he knew he was waking up on one of the medical beds, his mother's armor on a stand next to him.

"Oh God. How long was I out?" He asked, placing a palm on his forehead and sitting up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. He noticed his reaction times were slightly buffed, and his muscle structure was a little larger. Had they performed the augmentations already? That would mean he had immediately been operated on after he fainted.

"Oh! Your awake. Hello Alex. It's been a few months, since we took the chance and went ahead and gave the augmentations to you. Sorry." A voice told him, which he immediately identified as Dr. Emily Grays.

"Don't worry about it. I'm to sleepy right now to do anything about it." He said, shaking his head. "You're positive you gave me the correct dosage of anesthesia?" He asked, Dr. Gray nodding. "Okay."

"I measured it compared to tranquilizer, so I'm positive I made the correct dosage." She said, Alex scrunching his face in thought.

"What kind of tranq?" He asked, blinking.

"Uh...I think it was elephant. I'd have to ask though." She admitted, Alex staring at her, then standing up and walking over to his mother's armor and moving to put it on. "Oh, the Director asked me to tell you that you will need updated armor for this project, so you can't wear that. I know it's special, but the Director ordered it! Sorry." She said, Alex sighing.

"Well, where's the new armor?" He asked, Dr. Gray promptly turning around.

"Follow me!" She said, walking out, followed by Alex.

They made their way through the ship, until they reached the armory. She directed him inside, where he saw a few others picking out armor on screens. They all turned their heads at his entrance, then turned back to their armory screens.

Alex walked through the rows until he saw two different armor variants next to each other on screens. The left one was the new Helioskrill armor, and the right one was the older, at least compared to Helioskrill, War Master. He selected the War Master helmet and the Helioskrill armor, then swiped his two hands together and merged the two pieces together, then selected a primary color: Salt, and a secondary: Vermillion, and the Legendary visor, then sent the layout to the computer, which then sent the design to the armory's construction unit, and Alex waited as his armor was both scanned for defects and said defects were fixed.

Finally, the armor was complete and it came up from a hole in the floor, which Alex assumed was where the whole thing was done, then grabbed the chest and back piece and had one of the others connect them, then slid on the arms, legs, and finally the helmet.

"Whoa." Someone said, whistling.

"Well, looks pretty nice. They go together." Another one said, Alex nodding, then turning and walking out to get his designation.

After reaching the bridge, he saw that no one was prepared for his arrival, as they all turned in surprise.

"Ah, hello Alex. Good to see you." The Director said, Alex stopping at his name, still mid-step

"How'd you know it was me?" Alex asked, his tone filled with suspicion.

"Well, the War Master helmet is reminiscent, if only slightly, of the CQB helmet, and the Helioskrill armor is similar is the shoulder area to Hayabusa, so I made an assumption. Glad to know it was right." She explained, Alex nodding and bringing his feet together.

"I'd like to request my designation, Director." He said, although he knew one possibility.

"Oh? I'm surprised it wasn't obvious. Your new designation, Alex Valesquez, is Freelancer Agent California."

 **And that, people, is the prologue for Project Freelancer: Rebirth. I hope you like it, because I look forward to writing it. This is, by far, my longest worded document to date. More than 9,700 words. Let's see what takes the record next, shall we? Anyway, the people picking out armor near the end are Agents Washington, New York, and the Dakotas. I want to say that no, Alex and Xoxi will not be in a relationship, but consider each other good friends, something Alex has few of. So, I hope you guys like the armor choice, because I think they go together. Ain't gonna change it. Sorry. And yes, I did just add Dr. Emily Gray to this story...and hilarity and horror will ensue...I guarantee it. Please don't kill me, guys. I needed some funny doctor and it was either Doc or Gray, so I went with the one with more screen-time and better character. Yes, I am aware that shots have been fired. Please let me keep my butt-cheeks. I don't hate Doc, I just think that Gray is better due to her...eccentric behavior. Also the torture of Zachary Miller was funny too. Again, I don't hate Doc. Anyway, I will be posting the Prologue of the Warriors: Mud Wasp(better title pending) story after this, so look forward to that. My schedule will be more around publishing which one I want to do more, and some stories may be canceled if I lose interest. Sorry. But hey! If any of you guys want to take over the discontinued stories, you can. Only rule is that you actually _want_ to do it and aren't just trying to be nice. Okay, so if you guys can tell me a better name for the afore Warriors story in the comments, I'd appreciate it. The only reason for the name is that the two central characters will be named Waspeye and Brownfur, and a Paper Wasp can have red, yellow, and brown in it, so that was the first name that came to mind. I don't like it, but it was the best I could come up with. Sorry if you don't like it. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy, and peace out. Word Count: 9,752**


	2. Chapter 1-Struggles

**Hey guys Price here and welcome to chapter one of Project Freelancer: Rebirth, titled Struggles. It is titled this because this story is going to be a much more dark and gritty story than California Chronicles, and will follow Alex as he hunts down the one who killed his mother, or a suitable replacement for them, and will detail an occasional backstory chapter where he recounts the things he did, willingly and with no remorse, to Xoxi. And it's also a double meaning title, so I'm gonna have fun with that. All the chapters based on Alex discovering something new or having a breakdown will be titled based around the song's pre-chorus and chorus. All others will be named whatever I think fits. If you were wondering, Xoxi and Baka will be recurring characters, and are related to the plot. Also Alex and Xoxi _may_ develop some sort of relationship, but it depends on a lot of things. Mainly how many people want it(which I accept may not be a lot depending on how many people decide to review the story) and how much I feel like doing it. This will be the chapters that are named according to the pre-chorus and chorus of the song: Chapter 2: It's Not Worth It, Chapter 4: It's Not Workin', Chapter 7: You Wanted It to be Picture Perfect, Chapter 10: Scream if You Wanna, Chapter 15: Shout if You Need to, Chapter 17: Fight if You Need to, Chapter 20: Smash if It Helps You. The last chapter will be Chapter 21 or 22, so Alex will either come to terms with everything, or there will be a sad ending. So, hope you guys like this story, and I hope I can come up with some good filler/actual plot between the "Coping" chapters. Also yes, I'm aware the song is about a relationship, but it also reflects well on Alex's life in my opinion. Anyway, enjoy please, and if you want the good and bad endings to be separate chapters or two halves of one, tell me. Please R&R so I know if you want more or would rather see other stories.**

"I've done my research, Alex. I know you place little to no value into the lives of others, breaking from that very rarely. So my question to you is this: Why do you fight for them still? If you view humanity as a species so worthless, why do you continue to **stand** every time I knock you down? Why are you so determined to stop me when you agree with me?"

"Well...to be honest, I've always been a man of my word. No matter what. I made a promise to someone once, a friend of mine, that I would honor their final wish. That wish was that no matter what, I do something that keeps this species alive if something threatens it. So I ask **you** , I ask you this: How many times do I have to go down to get you to back off? How many times are you going to try to take me down until you realize...I'm not going down. Even though I agree with you, I continue to fight because I have a reason to. I have a promise to keep. And I have a friend to avenge."

December 1, 2581

-Last known conversation between former Project Freelancer Gen 2 Alex Velasquez and a rogue Sangheili Shipmaster

Struggles

Alex made his way to his designated room, seeing a few other Freelancers along the way. Most notable were the ones wearing Tracer, Copperhead, Viper, Noble, Fenrir, and Argus. The pilots wore Foehammer. A lot of the Freelancers wore Mark VI, with the occasional Mark IV or V. He even saw a teal one with a Valkyrie HRIST helmet and Hellcat Onslaught armor.

He was currently thinking about who he'd be forced to bunk with. Hopefully it wasn't someone who could get on his nerves easily...which was a lot of things. Lost in thought, he didn't notice the purple and green Mark VI wearing Freelancer in front of him, and bumped into them.

"Hey! Watch it!" The other Freelancer exclaimed, swinging around aggressively. Alex immediately reached for his SOCOM, but remembered it wasn't there. In a move he surprised himself with, he grabbed the other Freelancer by the wrist, swung them around, then jumped and kicked them in the helmeted head, landing before he could process his own actions.

The Freelancer slowly pushed themselves up, another, lighter colored copy Freelancer running up.

"North! You okay?" The lighter copy asked, Alex's eyes widening and him gasping lightly. "I'll kill you!" The lighter copy shouted, Alex breaking out of his trance of surprise and dodging the punch thrown at him, then catching the other. He slowly twisted until the other Freelancer was on their knees, gasping in pain.

"I am not in the mood to deal with people high on their own self-esteem. So back off, and leave me alone before I do something that would make a Brute lose it's lunch." He threatened, twisting the arm a little again for good measure, then kicking the Freelancer back and walking past.

"You think I'll sit back and watch you hurt my sister? Fat chance." The copy said, having stood up. Alex sighed, then turned.

"Hey L? You still have that video?" He asked, the lighter colored copy tilting his head a little.

"Of course, Alex. Though I'd advise against showing them it." Lambda said, appearing next to Alex, the crowd of Freelancers collectively taking a step back.

"Play and project, L." Alex ordered, Lambda sighing, then disappearing. A video was projected next to Alex, which showed him killing the soldiers.

"Oh my God..." He heard someone mutter, Alex clenching his fists.

"Don't test me." He said, the video disappearing as he turned and walked away, leaving a fearful crowd in his wake.

-Xoxi POV four months prior-

It had been two months since she had learned Alex's true nature, but she couldn't bring herself to hate him. She didn't know why. All she knew was that she felt the need to comfort him, like a compassionate person comforting a dying animal...just less dying. Hopefully. That was why she was currently waiting outside the quarters of R'tas Vadum, hesitating in making her presence known.

Finally, and with a slight gulp, she rapped on the door. It opened, revealing a surprised R'tas.

"Oh! Hello Xoxi. Is something wrong?" He asked, Xoxi looking down.

"I don't know. I feel like I should hate Alex for doing what he did, but I can't. And I feel the need to comfort him like a compassionate person comforting a dying animal...just with less dying. Hopefully." She said, R'tas' gaze softening.

"I know the feeling. He's both terrifying but also entrapping, isn't he? He can scare you but make you want to hold him and make him feel better." He said, then apparently realizing what he'd said, quickly attempted to correct himself. "Of course, that's what I assume you mean. I only know how you feel from when I fought alongside his mother on Reach. She was the same way, but...not as cruel. She was able to spare others if she felt pity. Alex can't. I've seen him gun down a crowd of younglings who got caught up in the civil war his species is facing because he was ordered to. He didn't seem fazed. He's admitted to worse, and to being able to sleep at night. Even for me, I don't know how he does it. I have nightmares about the Flood sometimes. I can't even think about them. He does things that our species would consider dishonorable, time and time again and doesn't seem to care. He's not the kind of person you find pity for easily. If you can, then it must mean that there is something good about him after all. I'll go back. Drop you there with instructions to his room, wherever it is, and return to Sangheilios." He said, Xoxi nodding numbly, thanking him, and turning to walk away. "Xoxi," he said, Xoxi turning.

"Yes, R'tas?" She asked.

"Make sure he lives. I lost a lot of brothers in the war. I do not wish to lose a human one." He said, Xoxi nodding, then walking away.

-Alex POV present-

Alex was about to reach his door when the particle detector in his helmet detected the skin cells of a living being, directly in front of him. Sangheili.

"R'tas, why are you back?" He asked, taking off his helmet. His eyes widened when the Sangheili uncloaked, revealing...Xoxi.

"Hello, Alex." She said, Alex taking a step back in surprise.

"H-hello Xoxi. Why are you here?" He asked, suddenly morphing back into his kind mask. "Come in." He said, smiling, Xoxi standing aside so he could open the door. They walked in.

"I'm here because I wanted to be here. And before you ask, I can handle myself. I don't need you to protect me like you did for R'tas." She said, suddenly, surprisingly, angry. She slapped him, making him leave his head turned for a few seconds from shock. Her anger quickly dissipated, and she grabbed him in a hug. Alex, after a few seconds of more shock, slowly hugged back, dropping his helmet. The rollercoaster of emotion was new to him, and he was a little freaked out.

"What is happening?" He questioned, Xoxi not answering.

After a few moments of silently standing there, Alex finally felt a little awkward, and slowly peeled Xoxi off.

"I'm sorry for that." She said, Alex still looking shocked. He was still trying to sort his thoughts.

"That's...that's okay." He said, then suddenly remembered what Dr. Gray had told him, and he quickly grabbed Xoxi and hugged her again, burying his face in her shoulder as he let out his grief. This time it was Xoxi's turn to be shocked, and slowly hug back, unsure what had made him suddenly start crying.

With a hiss, the door suddenly opened, and Alex tensed.

"You!" He heard a familiar voice shout, and he quickly turned, face still red, tears still streaming down his face. It was the purple and green Freelancer who he had kicked in the helmet, helmet in her hands. Crap. Upon seeing his face, though, she took a step back, almost as if she felt awkward. "Um...if I'm interrupting something personal, I can leave until after." She said, looking away.

"Thank you." Alex said hoarsely, earning a blink of surprise from both Xoxi and the other Freelancer.

"I'll come back." The Freelancer said, walking out of the doorway and putting her helmet back on, going to some other part of the ship. Alex went back to hugging Xoxi and crying.

"Alex...what is causing this?" She asked, Alex looking up.

"Some friends of my mother's were trapped on a planet in the middle of a civil war. They all made it back, except for Church. He was an AI, like Lambda. He sacrificed himself to save the others because he was getting old, by AI standards. They're one of the few people I'd consider family." He said, then, upon realizing something, started laughing.

"Alex? What is funny?" Xoxi asked, confused.

"I just realized, they don't even know I joined this program. Or that I was an ODST. For once, I'll have stories to tell them. Then again nothing will beat the story about Tucker being impregnated via parasitic alien embryo thing." He muttered that last part, though Xoxi still heard.

"Are you talking about that green armored human shown in the message from the planet you call Chorus?" She asked, Alex nodding. "That explains why the green armored Sangheili in my training group said 'Father' when he was shown! Also the fact he sometimes says weird things he keeps saying is genetic." She said, frowning as if still confused a little.

"Thought you don't reproduce like that." Alex stated, as if unsure whether it was a question or not.

"We don't. Though it is a funny thought." Xoxi said, shrugging.

"Yeah." Alex said, looking down suddenly.

"Alex." Xoxi said, placing a hand on his shoulder. He tensed at first, but relaxed quickly. "Look at me." She ordered. He looked up.

"What?" Alex asked, sadness forgotten in his surprise that she was being authoritative, not because she was a female, but because he didn't know she _had_ an authoritative side to her.

"While I understand your reasons for crying, I ask you to stop. You're ugly when you cry." She said, though she regretted the last sentence when he smirked mischievously.

"You saying I'm attractive when I'm not?" He asked, playfully. He wasn't really being serious, but the small amount of humor he had right now couldn't help itself.

"N-no, I just meant...that...uh, Gods help me." Xoxi muttered, shaking her head.

"Xoxi I'm joking." Alex said, chuckling.

"You humans' sense of humor is extremely odd." Xoxi muttered, Alex rolling his eyes.

" _Alex Velasquez, you are needed in the armory._ " A voice announced, Alex sighing. He stood and walked to the door, then turned when he realized she wasn't following.

"You coming?" He asked, Xoxi blinking in surprise again.

"But they called for you." She said, a little confused.

"Well I'm not leaving you here! I'm sure at least two other Agents were in the UNSC during the H-C War and aren't happy with how it ended. I'd hate to have to kill more people today." He said, but to be honest he couldn't care less whether or not he killed other people today, he just didn't want to considering how Xoxi reacted to that video.

"Fine. I can understand that." She said, shrugging and placing her helmet on then following him out the door.

They walked towards where the armory was, with Xoxi receiving a few looks, though they were quickly ended when Alex would look at them. When they arrived, Alex was waved over by that crazy doctor from earlier. Emily Gray, if his memory served him right.

"Hey Alex, how are you? Oh, I see you brought a friend! A Sangheili too. Mind if I borrow him? I've always wanted to perform some experiments on their species." Dr. Gray said, Alex placing a foot in front of Xoxi's in a defensive manner.

"She. And no, you cannot borrow her." Alex said, looking around at the technicians. "What did you want me for exactly?"

"Oh! I just wanted to let you know that in the past few hours our catalog was updated. We now have the Dynast helmet and armor set, along with some others. According to the pictures of your mother I... _convinced_ a friend of mine to acquire, the helmet would be a much better resemblance than War Master of her armor, considering it's based on the CQB and CQC armor variants." She answered, Alex blinking in surprise under his helmet.

"May I see it?" He asked, Gray turning to look behind him.

"Hey! You over next to the AG System! Get a Salt and Vermillion Standard Dynast helmet now! Legendary visor!" She shouted at a technician, who quickly began swiping away at the screen to fulfill the order. In only a minute, there was a Dynast helmet in his hands. He looked into the visor for a solid three minutes, then took off the War Master helmet and placed the Dynast helmet on. The helmet was similar in appearance, sure, but he wanted to be sure. He took Lambda's chip out of the War Master helmet, handed said helmet to Xoxi, and placed it in the port of the Dynast helmet.

"Well, the systems are different, due to being more advanced, but it's otherwise the same as your mother's gear. Aside from that and being shaped slightly different, that is all." Lambda announced, Alex nodding.

"Thanks, L." He said, then looked at Gray. "If that's all, we'll be going now." He said, taking the War Master helmet back from Xoxi and tossing it into a chute for helmets no longer being used.

"Oh! The director would also like to talk with you about your friend here. Something about living conditions and how none of the equipment aboard the ship being compatible, or at least not comfortably so." Dr. Gray said, Alex nodding and walking out, Xoxi following him to where the bridge was.

They arrived a few minutes later, and there were a few stares from the people on the bridge. They, like the ones in the hallway a while ago, were ended when he looked at them as well.

"Hello Alex. I see you got the message about the armory and I must say, you are nothing short of terrifying, even without that little... _incident_ in the mess. But, that isn't what I'm immediately concerned with. While I am not concerned with her safety, since I know what you and her species are capable of, I am concerned with our facilities and the fact they are not equipped to handle a being of her anatomy, physical differences, and other things we both know of. So...tell me, Alex Velasquez, how should we continue?" The Director asked, Alex's head tilting up as he thought. As he was about to answer, however, Xoxi stepped forward. Her helmet was in her hands and she had a defiant-looking smirk, or a Sangheili version anyway, or what he assumed could be one, but may be something else that looks defiant due to her anatomy differences.

"I believe you should be consulting me, don't you think? Of course, I understand if you wish to consult the opinion of a male with a, and I mean this professionally, dismal understanding of our culture and...furniture, I believe is the word you humans use, rather than a source with the most knowledge about our culture and furniture, as well as other required resources that your human counterparts are too small to be usable, let alone comfortable. If the resources are available, I could instruct a group of humans to construct said requirements easily. Besides, I have him to back up my orders should they go un-heard." Xoxi said, the Director blushing in embarrassment at the fact she had neglected to seek Xoxi's knowledge. That smirk was definitely sarcastic.

"I think that would be a good idea. My apologies for not deferring to you for this task, but I suppose I'm not used to having an Elite in such close quarters." She said, Alex looking at Xoxi at the word Elite. He knew some, if not most, of Sangheili didn't like the nickname "Elites", and he didn't know if Xoxi did or not.

"It's Sangheili, Director. A lot of them don't like being called Elites." Alex cautioned, earning an over the shoulder glance from Xoxi.

"Sorry, but I never could pronounce that word. Need to work on that." The Director explained, earning a nod from Xoxi.

"I assume that was it?" Alex asked, the Director nodding. "Come on Xoxi." He said, turning and walking into the elevator. Xoxi stepped in after putting her helmet on and he pressed the down button. After a few moments, he turned to look at Xoxi.

"Dismal? Really?" He asked, getting a huff from Xoxi.

"Sorry. I was just mad that she didn't think to defer to me when I obviously know how to assemble what requirements are needed." She explained, Alex shaking his head.

"It's fine. Though I don't know the most about your species, I'd hardly say what I do know is dismal. Maybe compared to yours, but not for a human." He said, shrugging.

"Hey Alex?" Xoxi asked after another moment of silence.

"Yeah?"

"Why do you always act nice whenever I'm around? I've seen how you are. Why do you do that? If it's so different from how you normally act, why do you take the time to do it? I don't mind it, but it seems odd that you would do something like that for someone you've just met. Unless...you know." She said, Alex looking away.

"I don't know. I just do. I doubt it's what you're implying, but maybe because you're the only real friend I have outside of the ODSTs, Lambda, and R'tas. Maybe Baka." Alex replied, shrugging as well.

"Helpful." Xoxi muttered, Alex remaining silent. They remained silent until the door opened on their level, where Alex walked out and turned right. "Alex? Aren't your quarters the other way?" Xoxi asked, Alex turning to her.

"Got some stress built up. Need to release it." He said, jerking his head to follow him, so she did. As she caught up to him and got beside him, he turned to look at her. "Maybe we should get some settings installed for you."

"Probably a good idea." She said, Alex choosing not to reply.

They arrived at the training room a minute or two later, and Alex noted that the freelancer he had kicked was there. He assumed it was North Dakota, considering the other Freelancer's cry. She quickly noticed him and stood in front of the door, waiting. He looked at Xoxi and motioned for her to stay put, then walked up to North.

"California."

"North." Alex greeted, looking past her and into the arena, which featured a CQC arena, an agility based jungle gym-styled sparring area, and a gun range for each type of weapon: close-range, medium-range, and long-range.

"I see you have a Sangheili lady-friend." North said, tilting her head.

"Something like that." He said, looking back at Xoxi for a moment. "Can you move?"

"Why should I? You still never apologized." She said, Alex grunting.

"Sparring match. Your choice. Sound fare enough?" He asked, North thinking.

"Sure. Hope your as good at sniping as you are at kicking." She said, Alex motioning for Xoxi to follow as North turned and walked over to the long-range shooting gallery. There was currently an all white MJOLNIR MK. VI-clad Freelancer shooting at targets. He looked over and quickly reloaded the sniper rifle before jogging past them.

"You ever shot one of these before?" North asked, tossing a sniper rifle to Alex.

"I was an ODST. Part of the qualifying program is an accuracy test in different conditions. Apparently they have a vacuum arena as well, but no one was crazy enough to risk braining themselves on a wall firing an Anti-Mat in zero gee." Alex answered, earning a look from North.

"Except for you, I'm sure." She said.

"Oh no, not me." Alex responded, North looking at him again, probably surprised.

"Let's just shoot." North said, slapping a magazine into the rifle and racking the bolt at the same time as Alex. "Launch some cans FILSS."

"Gladly, Agent North." A male voice said, two empty cans flying up from the ground. Alex fired immediately, nailing his can before it could complete it's rise. North fired a microsecond later. Lambda calculated it.

"Microsec faster than you." Alex said, reloading the rifle and laying it down.

"CQC." North said, doing the same then walking over to the sparring area. She then looked up at a viewing area and waved somebody down. A minute later and a all teal Freelancer walked in wearing a Valkyrie HRIST helmet and Hellcat Onslaught armor set. Alex figured this was the new Carolina based on the similar armor and color.

"Two versus One? Hardly fair." Xoxi said, the Carolina replacement looking at her like he hadn't noticed her before.

"I'll be fine." Alex said, Xoxi huffing.

"Wasn't talking about you." She countered.

"Relax. I'm not going to kill them." He said, then noticed her eyes widen. He reflexively spun around and crossed his forearms as the teal Freelancer threw a punch at his helmet. He kicked out as well, blocking the punch and sending the teal Freelancer flying back.

"Alright. Let's dance. And by dance I mean let's try to beat each other into submission." Alex said, adding that last part for Xoxi's sake.

"I know what the phrase means Alex." Xoxi muttered, ever the sarcastic one.

North and Carolina both began to circle around Alex, while he stood there looking bored.

"Lambda, keep an eye on Carolina. He's the largest threat." Alex whispered, Lambda projecting a screen in Alex's lower right corner of the HUD showing Carolina to his left. With that taken care of, he ducked under a punch from North and spun one-hundred-eighty degree and elbowed North in the stomach, then stood up and blocked another punch, grabbing the arm and twisting it, then kicked North in the inside of her knee and pulled on the arm, throwing North into Carolina as he tried to jump at him.

"Oh...you're good." Carolina said, Alex catching a hint of the beginning of a blood rage in his voice.

"I thought I was crazy." Alex muttered, blocking a kick from North, sending her to the floor once again with a leg sweep and a kick to the chest a good distance away. However, in that time, Carolina was able to close the distance and send a few sharp, and surprisingly painful and effective, jabs and kicks to Alex's midsection and a leg sweep, beginning to bring the leg down for a neck stomp, but Alex managed to catch it and push the leg inward towards Carolina's hips, rolling away as Carolina stumbled back.

"Uh, Alex? I think maybe you should reconsider fighting them. I'm detecting an elevating sense of rage from Carolina. Also blood rage. Oh, and you are crazy. This Carolina just has a bad temper that happens to be ten times as worse as the original." Lambda said, Alex rolling his eyes.

"The love and support is overwhelming, really." He retorted, Lambda warning him about an attack from behind from North, who he once again threw into Carolina.

"Didn't you make that joke already?" Lambda asked, Alex mentally shrugging.

"Hell if I know."

"You can remember every detail of what you've done as an ODST, but not a joke?" Lambda asked.

"Kind of two very different forms of memory Lambda." Alex stated, earning an agreement from Lambda.

Suddenly, Carolina came at him and began to deliver jabs and kicks faster than he could counter. Soon he was feeling bruised and was quickly getting a little pissed off. The next kick Carolina sent his way he managed to block. He seized his chance and pressed his advantage. He was able to quickly land a punch to his helmet that made him stagger. Alex then grabbed one of Carolina's forearms and pulled him closer, clotheslining him as he staggered by from the force of Alex's pull. He didn't get back up.

"Alex! Behind!" Lambda warned, Alex turning and jumping up and over a punch from North, grabbing her around the waist as he came down, flipped to land feet-first, and slammed her down onto the floor helmet-first.

"Match Point. Advantage, California." The new F.I.L.L.S announced, Alex walking out of the arena.

"Well at least you didn't try and kill them." Xoxi said, Alex rolling his eyes.

"Hey!" Someone shouted, Alex and Xoxi turning around to see that the new Carolina was standing, pointing at Alex. "I'm not done."

"I have more important things to do than fight someone with an ego too big to live down failure." Alex said, turning and walking away again.

"Get back here, you son of a whore!" Carolina shouted, Alex stopping, fists clenching. Xoxi noticed this and attempted to grab his arm, though Alex quickly turned around to look at Carolina, so she turned to the agent.

"You should r-"

"Shut up, squid-face!" Carolina shouted, Alex surging forward and ducking under a punch from a surprised Carolina, grabbing him around the waist and threw him down onto the ground. He then proceeded to beat the crap out of him, grabbing a fore-arm to block a punch and snapped it, making Carolina scream in agony.

"Never. Insult her!" Alex ordered, pointing at Xoxi. "And never. **_Ever!_** Insult my mother!"

"Okay! Okay! I won't!" Carolina screamed, Alex standing up, kicking Carolina's broken arm once for good measure.

"Agent California! Stand down!" Someone shouted, Alex turning to see a bunch of other Freelancers looking at him with their guns raised.

-Spectator Area, Five Minutes Earlier-

Agents South Dakota, Florida, Maine, New York, and Washington were watching as Alex laid waste to Carolina and North.

"I guess he's better than we thought." York said, shrugging.

"Uh oh." Wash said, pointing at Carolina standing up, Alex stopped and fists clenched. They watched as the Sangheili turned to say something to Carolina, but stopped when Carolina said something to her, pointing as well. They watched in horror as Alex surged forward and ducked under a punch, grabbed Carolina around the waist, and threw her down, breaking his arm as he tried to punch him to fend him off.

"Oh my God! F.I.L.L.S. we need a medical team in the training arena now! Tell them to hurry! Tell them it's urgent, I don't know! Just make them hurry!" York shouted as they all ran out, grabbing various weapons from their backs as they ran out of the spectator area to stop California.

They arrived to find Agent California walking away from Carolina, who was screaming as he clutched his broken arm.

"Agent California! Stand down!" Wash shouted, Battle Rifle in hand as they watched the Agent turn towards them. Much to their surprise, California saw them, then turned back to the Sangheili and continued walking towards the door. "Stand! Down!"

"I don't have time to deal with this." Alex said, stopping and walking towards them, the Sangheili reaching an arm out as if asking him to stop, then retracting it.

Finally, California was visor to visor with Wash, or more specifically, Battle Rifle barrel to chest. Slowly, Alex reached up and moved the barrel away from his chest, pointing it at the ceiling and then stepping closer, visor to visor with Washington.

"Are you guys going to be an issue?" He asked, looking at everyone.

"Stand. Down." Wash ordered again, York racking her shotgun and catching Alex's attention.

"York?"

 **And that concludes Chapter One of Project Freelancer: Rebirth! I'm trying out cliffhangers now as you guys can see, so look forward to that in the near future I suppose. What will happen? What will Alex do? Is he going to go nuts and completely murder everyone? Maybe some day. Also, yes I'm going to be adding short little dialogue things to the beginning of each chapter from now on as a replacement for Ciara's ViDoc recordings. They will also be teasing scenes in either future chapters, or future tie-in stories for Alex that I may make long One-shots instead of different stories with multiple chapters to try and make longer chapters and things. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed, and please R &R to give me tips. Peace! Word Count: 5,270**


	3. Chapter 2-Not Worth It

**Hey guys Price here and welcome to Chapter 2 of Project Freelancer: Rebirth. I know the last chapter seemed a little forced or at least some scenes seemed added after it was written or something like that anyway. Sorry about that, but I always somehow manage to write better prologues than actual chapters. I don't know why that is the case. Anyway, this chapter, like said in Chapter 1, will be called It's Not Worth It, and the song I mentioned is called Take It Out On Me by Thousand Foot Crutch if you didn't know. This Chapter features some revelations(not that Tex killed his mom, that comes later), Alex arguing with the Director and other Agents, and the last thousand or two words will be a backstory on one event that Alex tells to Xoxi. Anyway, please R &R so I know what you think, and I hope I can keep a decent tone of darkness throughout the story. Again, I still need to know if you want the good and dark endings to be separate chapters or one chapter with both endings written out. Whichever ending you want as canon is the canon one for you, so please don't judge others based on their canon choices. Ah who am I kidding, it's the internet. Some of you are gonna judge behind anonymity and that's okay. As long as you don't insult anyone, I have no need to remove comments or reviews. To my readers, this story is also on AO3, and to my AO3 readers, it's also on . That's why I mentioned comments and reviews. Constructive criticism is appreciated, and I do ask that you give it. Anyway, this Author's Note is getting long enough, so let us get onto Chapter 2 of Project Freelancer: Rebirth. Talk to you guys at the end of it.**

"L, I need you to send the Director a message! They need to know they're walking right into a trap! That ship isn't adrift, it's a bomb! Use the Hop if you have too! Just get that message to the Director!

"I c-c-c-can't Alex! The d-d-d-d-disruption field! I-i-i-i-it's too strong! It's r-r-r-r-restricting me to your h-h-h-h-helmet!"

"Lambda? You okay buddy?"

"The d-d-d-disruption field i-i-i-is o-o-o-overloading my s-s-s-s-systems!"

"Lambda! You there!? Answer me!"

July 5, 2564

-Former Project Freelancer Gen 2 Agent Alex Velasquez and his AI Fragment Lambda, moments before the UNSC Remembrance detonated from a damaged FTL drive after being left by Insurrectionists that had captured it days earlier.

"York?"

"Sorry, do I know you?" York asked, pointing her shotgun at Alex, who shook his head.

"No. Sorry. Thought I was seeing things again." He answered, Florida and South looking at each other.

"Again?" South asked, Alex looking at her. He merely nodded instead of giving some sarcastic retort like he wanted, getting bored.

"I can give you a full psychiatric workup if it's needed." Florida helpfully stated, Alex sighing.

"No. It isn't. Now I ask you again, Agent Washington. Are. You. Going. To. Be. A. Problem?" Alex asked, Wash looking over her shoulder and jerking her head at Alex, the largest Agent, who Alex assumed was the new Maine, walking forward and cracking their neck. He had to look up to stare at them. "You must be the new Maine. Wonder if you'll end up like the last one."

Apparently, the new Maine didn't like that, because they brought a knee up and into Alex's waist, Alex gasping for breath at the blow and falling to his hands and knees, helmet falling off.

"Alex!" Xoxi shouted, rushing forward. She was, however, stopped as the new Maine grabbed her by the throat, lifting her up.

"Stay out of this, Squid." Maine, who Alex identified as definitely a female this time, said, tossing Xoxi away.

"Clearly, you guys didn't learn from what just happened with the new Carolina." Alex said, Maine grabbing Alex by his hair and lifting his head up.

"Oh? What would that be?" She asked, Alex smiling.

"I don't appreciate people insulting my family and friends." He said, activating his suit's thrusters and head-butting Maine's visor, then bringing a knee up and into her groin area and making Maine drop to her knees.

"Oh my God." York said, Alex thrusting a palm into Maine's visor, Maine collapsing into unconsciousness.

"That was the shortest fight with Maine ever." Washington stated, Alex donning his helmet.

"Of all time." Alex added, getting stares. "That was Wash's catchphrase." He explained, everyone shrugging. "You know, the original Agent Washington."

"...You knew the original Agent Washington?" York asked, Alex nodding. "Prove it."

"L. Picture from the last time the family was together, please." Alex requested, Lambda appearing next to him.

"Yes, Alex." Lambda said, silence running rampant for a few seconds until a picture of Alex when he was twelve, along with Wash, Carolina, and the Reds and Blues appeared in Lambda's place.

"...Oh." York said, like she hadn't believed Alex.

"How'd you know them?" Florida asked, the picture disappearing.

"Well...I'm not the first Freelancer in the family." Alex answered, though his answer earned silent stares. "My mother was the original California, her brother was the original York, and my father was the original North Dakota." He explained, everyone remaining silent, more than likely out of shock. Except for Maine. She was still knocked out.

"Uh, guys? Where's the med team?" South suddenly asked, Washington sighing.

"FILLS! Where is the motherfu-"

"Hey guys! Sorry, had to take the long way. Someone knocked over some crates in the hallway." A man said, some more identically dressed personnel running over to where Carolina was, who by that point had been reduced to moans and whimpers.

Alex, meanwhile, had walked away to stand by Xoxi, innocently whistling when he stopped.

"Did Lambda really infiltrate the ship already?" Xoxi asked, surprised.

"He may be the strategy and pleasure Fragment, but he makes a mean infiltration code." Alex answered, Xoxi staring at him.

"Pleasure?" She asked, Alex nodding.

"You know, like how you take pleasure in a job well done. He amplifies it when needed, dulls it when it isn't." Alex explained, Xoxi sighing in relief. "Though apparently he also can amplify pleasure during-"

"I don't want to know!" Xoxi quickly said, hands up in a defensive way.

"...Okay." Alex said, frowning. "Wasn't talking about that, though."

"You weren't?" Xoxi asked, Alex shaking his head. "Oh."

"It's fine. I'm more worried about them." Alex said, nodding at the group of Freelancers trying to wake up Maine.

"Why?" Xoxi asked, Alex glancing at where the medical team was pulling various supplies out of medical cases they'd brought with them.

"Well, I presume they came down here in order to stop me from further damaging Carolina. With force if needed." Alex explained, Xoxi nodding to show she understood. "So I'm worried they'll try and stop me from leaving again. I've only been here...Lambda, calendar please."

"You were unconscious for exactly thirty seven hours, fifteen minutes, and thirty two seconds. You've been here for-"

"Approximately a day and a half." Alex finished, Xoxi nodding again. "If I end up killing a bunch of Freelancers, that's a day and a half wasted." He finished, Xoxi understand the hidden meaning. He felt he was closer to finding his mother's killer than ever before. If he was kicked from the program, he'd be back to square one.

"Hey! California!" South shouted, Alex looking over at him. "You better hope you didn't mess up my sister too much!"

"If you're as good as her I don't feel too worried!" Alex shouted back, cracking a small smile at the laughter that earned from South and Florida.

"Oh hey Maine, you're up." Wash suddenly said, Maine standing up and walking over to Alex, who was forced to look up again. He was expecting a punch or some display of violence, so he was surprised when Maine simply raised her arm at the elbow like that scene in that one film about the alien with the four fangs and the dreadlocks where that Austrian guy and the black guy met for the mission briefing

"No hard feelings?" Maine asked, Alex taking the hand and giving it a firm shake.

"Not on this side. You'll have to ask her for her opinion though." Alex answered, jerking his head at Xoxi.

"What about you?" Maine asked, Xoxi blinked in surprise. "Sorry about the whole lifting you by the throat and throwing you thing. California here made me a little mad." Maine apologized, Xoxi shaking the extended hand.

"I can understand the difference between a normal decision and one in the heat of battle or a high level of emotions." She answered, Maine nodding. "Have to. I'm stuck here with him." She joked, nodding at Alex. That earned a chuckle from Maine, at least.

"I'm glad my expense makes you laugh." Alex said, though with such a deadpan tone Maine actually thought he was serious. She simply stared at him for a few moments of silence, before she seemed to realize he was in fact being sarcastic. That earned another laugh, though a more awkward one.

"Hey, California! Uh...California's friend! Come here a sec!" Washington shouted, waving the duo over.

"Her name is Xoxi, Washington." Alex said after walking over, hand on a hip in annoyance.

"Not even gonna try and say that." Washington said, Alex sighing. "Anyway, what I wanted to tell you, is that the Director has told me to let you go. Apparently it's something to do with some mental problem that this happened." Washington explained, Alex staring at her.

"You could have worded that better you know." Florida stated, Alex flicking his gaze onto her for a split second. "Most people don't like it when you say they have some kind of mental problem to their face." She added, everyone staring at her.

"Eh. I already know. Not that big a deal." Alex said, him and Xoxi walking to the doors as everyone stared at him now.

"...We have no chance of making it to the end of this program alive, do we?" York asked, everyone, even Maine, shaking their heads in silent answer. "This will be the worst few years of my life, without a doubt."

"Such a pessimist, York." Florida chastised, earning a glare.

"Well it's true."

-ALEX'S POV, 5 MINUTES LATER-

Alex and Xoxi were quick to arrive at Alex's quarters, which, judging from the fact that North Dakota held the codes to the door, they would probably be sharing them. He made a silent promise not to take the same actions his mother had. He was here for a specific reason, and any relationships with other Freelancers could endanger that. This mission came first.

"Are you always this bad at making good first impressions?" Xoxi playfully questioned, Alex raising an eyebrow before remembering she couldn't see that. He took his helmet off and raised his eyebrow again.

"I did with you, didn't I?" He questioned, Xoxi huffing.

"Aside from me." She said, Alex thinking.

"I made a few good first impressions on people I know. My Drill Instructor, my CO, my squad mates, Rtas...and Lambda, if I remember correctly." Alex finally said, Xoxi doing the Sangheili equivalent of an eyebrow raise.

"That's more than I expected." She admitted, Alex raising his eyebrow again.

"How many did you expect?" He asked, Xoxi remaining silent. "I'm not that bad of a people person."

"I'm shocked." Xoxi said, in mock surprise.

"Yeah, yeah."

"So...Alex. I managed to recover a few files your mother had encrypted and locked down." Lambda suddenly said, Alex starting in surprise.

"Really?" He asked, Xoxi blinking at the thinly disguised hope in his voice.

"Nothing on who killed her, but it is something that may surprise you. I'd suggest sitting down." Lambda warned, Alex looking down at the bed he was sitting on. "Oh. Right. Xoxi, if you could give us a few minutes, it'd be most appreciated."

"Of course. It's none of my business anyway." She said, standing up and walking out. Probably going to explore the ship.

"All I can really tell you is that it was a fellow Freelancer who killed your mother, Alex. Details are few and far between, but the armor was Mark VI MJOLNIR and was black. I'll let you know when I uncover anything else." Lambda informed him, Alex furrowing his brow in thought.

"Thank you, Lambda. It helps." Alex responded, a slight smile tugging at his face. Finally, he had a lead.

"Should we go see if Xoxi's gotten in any trouble yet?" Lambda asked, Alex chuckling at that.

"I don't think that many people here have an issue with her." Alex shot back, Lambda sighing.

"Carolina was released from the medical ward with a cast and a stern lecture from the Director almost immediately." Lambda said. Alex had his helmet on and was out the door before he was half way finished.

"Track Xoxi's pheromones, Lambda." Alex ordered, sliding under a crate being lifted by a duo of soldiers.

"Already on it. She's in the Mess." Lambda said, Alex stopping.

"That's a little far. Any shortcuts?" He asked, looking around.

"Vents. Straight shot, just tall enough." Lambda answered, Alex looking up. A vent. He jumped, helped by his thrusters, and went through the grating, then turned to his right and bolted down the vent, thanking whoever made the vents for reinforcing them enough.

It took a minute for Alex to see the grate that held the Mess behind it.

"Lambda, can you open the grating?" He asked, watching as the grating slid to the side. "I feel like these vents were made to be traversed."

"Probably." Lambda agreed, Alex jumping out of the vent and landing, rolling to a stop behind a line of Freelancers and random personnel.

"Oh. Hey California." A Freelancer greeted, Alex noting the blue Helljumper helmet and Nightfall armor set that made up Florida's armor.

"Hey Florida. What's going on?" Alex asked, standing up.

"...You want the good news or the bad news?" Florida asked, Alex staring at him. "Right. Good news is that they haven't killed each other."

"Who?" Alex asked, though he probably knew who.

"Carolina and your Sangheili friend." Florida answered, Alex sighing. Of course.

"The bad news?" Alex asked, dreading the answer.

"...Carolina introduced her to alcohol." Florida answered, Alex staring at him silently.

"You're kidding, right?" He finally asked, Florida remaining quiet.

"...Yes. The real bad news is they are talking politely." Florida finally answered, Alex tilting his head.

"Why is that the bad news?" He asked, curious.

"The day Carolina is nice to a Sangheili is the day I take a tomahawk to the shoulder, which knocks me off a platform twenty or so feet in the air, landing face down." Florida said, Alex staring at him, surprised at the detail of his answer.

"The funny thing is, that happened to the original Florida." Alex said, earning a "huh" from Florida.

"So...you wanna go get her?" Florida asked, Alex nodding and walking through the crowd, coming to a stop at the sight of Xoxi and Carolina politely speaking to each other, standing next to Maine,

"Hey Maine. Help?" Alex asked, looking up at Maine.

"Sure thing." Maine answered, her and Alex walking forward. Maine stood next to Carolina, Alex next to Xoxi.

"I guess it's safe to come back now." Xoxi remarked, Alex nodding and watching Carolina.

"Hey, Alex." Carolina said, Alex looking at him. So he knew his name now.

"What?" Alex asked, a little suspicious.

"The Director informed me about some things. I...was in the wrong. I shouldn't have said that. I apologize." Carolina said, Alex staying silent for a few seconds.

"Me too. Even if what you said was...less than ideal, I shouldn't have reacted that way." Alex said, Carolina visibly surprised. He hadn't expected California to apologize when it was his own fault.

"You don't need to be sorry. It's not your fault how everything affected you." Carolina said, Alex sighing.

"Doesn't matter. I am." Alex said, tapping Xoxi on the shoulder and jerking his head at the door. She nodded and stood up, following him as he walked.

"I'm glad you know how to carry a civil conversation considering what she called you." Alex said after a few minutes of silent walking, making Xoxi blink at him in surprise.

"I've heard worse. Besides, it's hard to be insulted by being called something that doesn't look anything remotely like your species." Xoxi said, Alex shrugging.

"I suppose that makes sense." Alex conceded, looking at her. "So. Anything else you want to know about me?" He asked, Xoxi remaining silent for a few moments in thought.

"Aside from the obvious reasons, why does it make you so angry whenever anyone insults your friends or your mother?" She asked, Alex looking away for a minute or two in silence, trying to figure out how best to word his answer.

"Well, the reason for my friends is because I don't have many. Need to defend the little I have. For my mother...I don't have much of anything but a few memories. The only thing I have of her is Lambda, those few memories, and her Freelancer armor. Lambda has quite a lot, but most has been hidden behind firewalls and the like." Alex explained, Xoxi nodding lightly as she pondered his answer, remaining silent.

"I am sorry." Xoxi suddenly said, Alex looking at her in surprise.

"Sorry for what?" He asked, confused about what she could be sorry for.

"That you had to grow up how you did. That you have to live with the pain you do. That you have no one to share it with, because no one else understands it." She answered, Alex looking down.

"Wasn't expected today to be one of those deep, philosophical days." He joked, earning a quiet chuckle.

They arrived at Alex's quarters a few minutes later, both sitting on Alex's bed, Alex's helmet off as he smiled cheerfully. It was one of those false ones he did around her, as if he was trying to make himself seem like he wasn't what he was.

"Well, we've got a few hours to kill. I've got lots of stories. Wanna hear one?" Alex asked, Xoxi remaining silent as she remembered something Rtas had told her. He still had one of those false, albeit effective, smiles on his face.

"Rtas told me that you've killed...younglings. That you felt nothing for it." She said, Alex's smile faltering as he heard it. It returned slowly, hesitantly. Like he was trying to hide behind it.

"Well then. Story time." Alex said, sighing quietly. "I'm going to explain it to you, give you some perspective. Only way it'll seem not as bad."

"Okay." Xoxi murmured, Alex scooting back and pressing his back against the wall, backside laying on his pillow as his left foot was crossed by his right, knees bent slightly.

"It was an Insurrectionist colony in some Star System controlled by the New Colonial Alliance. I'd recently graduated from ODST training, and been assigned to a squad made up of mostly my mother's squad. There was Davon the Heavy Weapons Specialist, codename Plastique, Charlie the Recon Specialist, codename Ghost, Kunlata the Medical Specialist, codename Needles, and me, Alex Velasquez the CQC Specialist, codename Hellfire. It was our first deployment together, and the first time they saw me for what I was. It starts like this..."

-FIVE YEARS PRIOR, UNKNOWN NCA PLANET-

Alex walked towards the barracks, making his way to where his squad was supposed to be. It was his first deployment, and despite not usually caring about people's opinion of him, he was determined to make a good impression on his mother's old squad.

He entered the barracks and was surprised to see nobody there. Maybe they were somewhere else? He shrugged, setting his bag down on a cot and unzipping it.

"Hey. That's my cot." Somebody said, Alex stopping and turning around to see the speaker. There stood an ODST in full armor, like Alex, but his chestplate had a few scars on it, while Alex's was brand new, not a scratch or dent to be seen.

"Sorry. I'll move. Is there an open cot somewhere near Tango Squadron? Alex asked, trying to avoid injuring anybody on his first day on deployment.

"I don't think you understand." The man said, walking forward until his chestplate was touching Alex's. "Nobody touches my cot."

"Look. It's an honest mistake. I didn't know." Alex said, trying desperately to remain calm.

"Yeah, and you won't forget it, either." The man said, throwing a right hook at Alex's visor. Alex caught the fist, de-polarizing his visor so the man could see his face.

"Neither will you." Alex remarked, throwing his other hand into a chop on the man's throat, then spinning and flipping the man over his shoulder, and placing a boot on the man's shoulder.

"W-wait!" The man pleaded, but to no avail. Alex twisted the man's arm and heard it snap, the man screaming in pain.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Chill man!" Somebody exclaimed, Alex polarizing his visor and looking at the entrance to see three other ODSTs, one with a SRS99-S5 AM Sniper Rifle, one with a MA5D Assault Rifle and an assortment of medical supplies adorning his armor, and one with a M57 Pilum Assault Weapon. None of them were wearing helmets, which were clipped to their belts.

"Who are you guys?" Alex asked, suspicious.

"I'm Davon, this is Charlie, and that's Kunlata. We make up what's left of Tango Squadron. You are?" Davon asked, Alex tensing as he realized he'd just messed up his chance at a good first impression.

"Alex. Alex Velasquez." Alex answered, Davon blinking in surprise.

"You wouldn't happen to be Ciara's son, would you?" Kunlata asked, Alex sighing quietly before nodding.

"I can believe that. So, how is the lady?" Charlie asked, Alex tensing. Apparently, his silence was all they needed to know the answer. "Oh."

"Yeah." Alex said, glancing down at the man who was now whimpering in pain before kicking his helmet and knocking him out.

"Well that wasn't necessary." Davon remarked, Alex shrugging.

"It was getting annoying." Alex defended, crossing his arms.

"Yeah, much different from Ciara. This ought to be fun." Kunlata muttered, Alex glaring at him from behind his visor.

"Plastique, Ghost, and Needles. At least you guys are still alive." Alex said, earning a blink of surprise from the trio.

"She told you our codenames?" Charlie asked, Alex nodding. "That doesn't surprise me."

"Why's that?" Alex asked, more and more surprised by the second. These people did not act like he expected.

"She's not exactly the type of person to hide stuff. She made her opinions known, especially when they were not wanted. It's like she fed off people's contempt." Kunlata answered, Alex chuckling.

"As lovely as this conversation has been, we should probably get this guy to a medic." Alex said, looking down at the still unconscious man. Then realized Kunlata was a medic. "Oh yeah."

"You forgot I was a medic didn't you?" Kunlata asked, Alex nodding. "It happens. Despite having literally a dozen needles all over my armor."

"Sorry." Alex said, wincing a little.

"It's fine. Besides, it's just a dislocation. He'll be fine." Kunlata assured, shrugging.

"As fun as this talk is being, we need to go. Command wants us to check out a city a few miles out. Let's go, Hellfire." Davon ordered, Alex becoming confused.

"Who's Hellfire?" He asked, though he had an idea.

"You are." Charlie answered, following Davon and Kunlata as they walked out of the barracks, Alex following the trio.

-TWO HOURS LATER-

Alex followed Davon and Kunlata as they entered a building they had seen an person run into, Charlie having moved to an overwatch position.

"Careful guys, I got a lot of heat sigs coming out of the building. You have your work cut out for you." Charlie warned, Alex snorting quietly.

"We'll be fine." Alex assured, confident in his and his squad's abilities.

"Don't get cocky, kid." Davon said, looking back at Alex. Alex responded by raising his SMG he'd grabbed from the armory and turning, watching their six as they passed some stairs.

"Hold. Davon, if Hellfire is so confident, let him check the room upstairs." Kunlata said, looking at Alex.

"Received and approved. Hellfire, you know the drill." Davon said, Alex nodding and slowly walking up the stairs. He raised his head to look over the edge, seeing a person looking the wrong way in a doorframe. Alex unsheathed his knife and crept forward, then grabbed the man from behind, putting his hand over his mouth and slicing his throat, snapping his neck as well.

"Clear. One Tango encountered at top of stairs. Neutralized." Alex reported, keeping his voice low. "Checking rooms." He added, knife staying out. He encountered no more people on the second floor.

"Jesus Hellfire...slitting the throat and snapping the neck? That's a little overkill, don't you think?" Davon asked, looking at Alex. Alex shrugged.

"I don't know. Just thought I'd make sure." He answered, hearing a shuffling. He looked towards the door he stood next to when a person ran through, an MA5B in his hands and pointed at Davon and Kunlata. Alex grabbed the barrel and pointed it up, then pulled it forward, jerking it out of the person's hands. Then he brought his knife out and stabbed the person in the throat, grabbing the person and lifting them up, slamming them down face first onto the ground, making the knife go in deeper.

"Jesus Christ Hellfire! What the hell!?" Davon practically shouted, Alex looking at him in confusion.

"What?" He asked, surprised at the reprimanding tone.

"That wasn't necessary! You could have eliminated the threat in a less brutal way!" Davon exclaimed, Alex surprised by his words.

"Is that it?" Alex asked, Davon and Kunlata both taking a small step back in surprise.

"We can talk about Hellfire's methods later. Right now you have a building to search." Charlie reminded them, Alex huffing and taking point. He killed a few other Innies with a three round burst each, two in the chest and one in the head.

When they arrived at the top floor, Alex was surprised when a knife came flying at him. He lifted his SMG to protect himself, the knife embedding in it and ruining it. He threw the ruined gun down and barely caught a second knife that came flying at his chest. He threw it down as well and blocked a punch an Innie threw at him, returning it with a punch of his own that sent the Innie to the ground with a snapping sound. Four more Innies came rushing at him, though they were stopped when Charlie pulled the trigger on his rifle, nearly blasting in half.

Alex drew his sidearm and fired at the few remaining Innies, scoring eleven headshots. He sighed.

"Building clear." He reported, turning to walk out the door. He backed up when Kunlata and Davon came in, annoyance flashing across his face behind his visor for a brief moment.

"You check the room over there?" Davon asked, pointing at a door Alex hadn't noticed.

"N-" Alex was cut off by the sound of the door opening, Alex turning with sidearm aimed at the mass' head in a blink.

"Alex! Wait!" Davon shouted, Alex pulling the trigger before he finished. The mass jerked back, falling to the floor. "God-Alex! What's wrong with you!?" He shouted, rage filling Davon's voice as Kunlata stared in shock.

"I eliminated a threat." Alex said, his visor de-polarizing to show his blank and uncaring expression.

"It was just a kid!" Davon shouted, Alex's eyes widening as his breath shuddered in shock.

"No..." Alex whispered, Davon stepping away as Alex's mental condition visibly worsened at his statement. His pupils dilated, his hands came up to clutch his helmet, and he slowly sank to his knees.

Kunlata opened a private channel between him and Davon.

"This guy is a real piece of work. He's obviously not quite right in the head. He shouldn't be here, he should be in an asylum." He stated, Davon looking at him.

"You're right. He is, and should be. And he was allowed on the understanding that if he ever attacked a fellow soldier without provocation, mental instability or not, he'd be put down. His scores helped." Davon said, sighing and nudging Alex with his boot. The man didn't even budge. "And I think I know what makes him tick."

"Harming children and negative comments about his parents." Kunlata guessed, Davon nodding minutely. "Jesus Christ."

"I wouldn't let any of our fellow soldiers hear you say that. I only allow it because nobody in the squad is religious." Davon ordered, Kunlata chuckling.

"I don't think he'll care." He remarked, nodding at Alex.

"No...no he won't." Davon agreed, picking Alex up and helping the man walk out of pity.

Kunlata sighed. Alex seemed perfectly fine, with only a few minor problems when they met, which was to be expected given his life. It was during events like this that would make him worry. The rage had been clear in Alex's eyes. The doctor in him wanted the man to get help, but the soldier in him wondered what would happen if they set him loose on the enemy during a fit of rage. Just imagining the results made him shudder. If he was this cold and calculating when calm, he was fearful of the ruthlessness and violence that would be wrought upon the Innies if they did set him loose during a fit of rage.

-PRESENT DATE, FIVE MINUTES PAST-

"So that's the story of how and why I killed a kid. One of the few things I actually regret." Alex closed his story with, sighing at the memories of his actions.

"I see." Xoxi said, noticing the tears well that Alex didn't. Her hand subconsciously reached out to wipe them away, Alex stiffening at her touch. He closed his eyes with a content sigh, the warmth of her hand seeping through with the contact as he rested his head in her hand. Xoxi blushed lightly, well aware of how the act could be taken if somebody walked in.

The door whooshed open, Xoxi stiffening as she heard a quiet gasp. Gods, the hilarity of the event was not lost on her, nor the chances of it happening as she thought about it. She slowly turned without moving her hand, only to see York standing there.

"So getting laid doesn't change Alex's mood. Good to know."

 **So that was Chapter 2 of Project Freelancer: Rebirth. The event with the UNSC Remembrance will be covered soon, so don't worry. I am very sorry my writing seems to get worse after the prologue of this story and Jurassic World: A Pack Divided. I don't know why my writing downgrades like it does, but it does. I wish I had an explanation, but I don't. I hope you like it, though, so please do tell me if you do. I honestly expected Reviews on this story considering it is a sequel, but I don't mind. I do wish people would tell me how I could be better though, but I'll gladly take views over Reviews, because I at least know people find it and give it a shot. I accept I'm not the best writer so it doesn't bother me to get no reviews, despite how much I may grump or grumble about it. It's just my way of shrugging it off, despite how it seems. If you want to Review, please try and make it either compliments or constructive criticism. I'd rather have constructive criticism over false compliments, or any compliments because I at least know how to do better with help. You guys made me a better writer, so I can't thank you enough for that. Okay, that was sentimental. Time to fix it. No, Alex and Xoxi are not going to be in a relationship as of right now. For now, her role is purely as emotional support for Alex and occasional comic relief. I do intend to make Alex mentally messed up on levels of Shinji from Neon Genesis Evangelion. So prepare for that. Also, PLEASE go check out the Forum Jurassic World RP with the description that goes like this: "Welcome to Jurassic World! We have many rides, and your experience is sure to be- RED ALERT! Everyone to the center of the park. All rides are closed down, make your way to the center of the park. Come RP as a cannon character, someone that works at the park, someone visiting, or maybe even a dinosaur. Can you make it out alive, come and find out. Active, members wanted." We're waiting on more people to join in order to move along with the Movie RP, so please do go submit a character. It can, as said in the description, be a human or a dino. If it's a dino it can't be longer than 35 feet though. Word Count: 5,567**


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